Wool-cleaning machine.



No. 695,652. Patnted Mar. l8, I902.

- .F. G. SARGENT.

WUDL CLEANING MACHINE.

(Application filed Dec. 10. 1900.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

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No. 695,652. Patented Mar. I8, I902.

F. a. S'ABGENT. WOOL CLEANING MACHINE.

(Application filed Dec. 10, 1900.)

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TENT FFIQE.

WOOL-CLEANING MACHINE.

SPECIFIGATIONforming part of Letters Patent No. 695,652, dated. March 18, 1902. Application filed December 10,1900. Serial No. 39,365. (No model.)

Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings;

The invention appertains to wool-cleaning machines of the general class which comprise within. a main casing arotating beater to open up the wool and free it from dirt and dust and certain auxiliary means to prepare the material under treatment for the succeeding operations through which it is to pass. To dispose of the dirt and heavier particles of foreign matter in such a machine, a grating or screen is provided beneath the beater,through which the wool cannot pass, but which allows the dirt, &c., to fall into a dead-air space beneath. To dispose of the dust and light particles of foreign matter, a second screen is provided above the beater, separating the compartment in which the latter works from an overhead passage or chamber, in'which is located or with which is connected an exhaust-fan, whereby the dust, &c., is with drawn through the said upper screen while the wool remains under the action of the heater. In order to submitthe wool to a more thorough and prolonged treatment by the beater than would be had it the points of in troduction and discharge thereof were in the same line at opposite sides of the periphery of the beater, a type of machine has been devised wherein the wool is caused to travel laterally on the beater while being rotated and agitated thereby, thus following a spiral course from its point of introduction to its point of discharge. I have heretofore ina machine of this last type arranged a burringcylinder parallel to the beater in such manner that as the wool is carried around within the casing by. the action of the beater a part thereof becomes caught by the said burr-ingcylinder on which it is exposed to the action of a guard, by means of which burs are removed therefrom, the fibers being returned to the action of the beater, the wool finally being discharged from the machine through a spout at the end of the machine opposite to that at which it was introduced. .With this combination and arrangement a considerable proportion of the burs which are contained originally in the wool arecapable of being removed .within the machine and the condition of the wool is improved; but many burs yet remain in the wool when discharged, and a large amount of dirt and dust is carried along with the stock by the current of air which issues at the said discharge-point.

My invention has for its chief aim to pro- .vide an improved machine in which the wool shall be effectually opened, dusted, burred, and discharged in a clean state and will now be described in detail in connection with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Figure l is a plan view of a'machine provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on'the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a view of the feed end of the machine. tions similar to Fig. 2, as more particularly described hereinafter. showing chiefly the regulating-plate and its means of adjustment. 1

r The numeral 1 designates the framing of the machine. 2 designates the beater, turn-' ing with the shaft 3.

Fig. 7 is a detail view I Figs. 5 and 6 are modificatis the screen that surrounds the lower part of the beater and allows of the escape of the heavier particles of foreign matter.

5 is the screen above the beater through which the particles of dust are drawn. The

said screen 5 separates the beater-chamber from an overhead chamber or passage 6, with V which connects the fan 7, whereby the'dustis discharged from the machine. The feedapron for the machine is shown at 8 and the toothed feed-roller at 9.-

- In order that the wool may be more effectually opened and cleaned, in consequence of being subjected to althorough and prolonged treatment while under the control of the beater 2, the latter is of aconstruction to cause the wool after being fed into the machine at one end of the beater by the feedapron 8 and feed-roll 9 to travel spirally case less than that of the beater.

around within the machine. and gradually pass laterally lengthwise of the beater, the discharge or delivery of the wool from the beater being arranged to take place at the opposite end of the beater. To this end I have shown in the present instance a cone-shaped beater revolving within a correspondinglyshaped chamber.

At the discharge end of the machine is located a burring-cylinder 10, arotating guard 11, and a rotating brush 12. \Vhen the wool has been carried through the machine from the small end of the beater-chamber to the large end thereof, it is delivered to the burring-cylinder 10 and is carried around on the latter, the projecting bu rs,&c. ,beingknocked oft by the rotating guard 11, the fan drawing back under the guard into the machine any fiber knocked off. The fiber that has been cleared of burs and shives by being carried on the burring-cylinder past the guard is discharged directly from the machine by being dotted from the burring-cylinder by the rotating brush 12 and is discharged through the spout 13.

A longitudinal aperture 14 is made in the casing of the beater-chamber, and in the said opening is set an auxiliary toothed cylinder 15, whose periphery is immediately adjacent to that of the beater. The said auxiliary cylinder 15 receives the Wool that is being carried around by the beater, but does not retain the said wool through a complete rotation on its own axis. The wool is only carried by the auxiliary cylinder on that portion of the latter whichis within the beater-chamber. Through the slit between the edge of the aperture 14: and the surface of the auxiliary cylinder 15 a continuous draft of air into the chamberis set up by the action of the fan 7 and also in part by the action of the beater 2. This indraft of air through longitudinal opening or aperture 14L operates automatically to strip or dofi the wool from the teeth of the auxiliary cylinder at the lower side of the opening or aperture 14 and to retain the said wool within the beater-chamber. Preferably the auxiliary cylinder and the beater are caused to rotate in opposite directions, so that the adjacent portions of their peripheries will move in the same direction, the peripheral speed of the auxiliary cylinder being in such Preferably, also, as indicated by the arrows in the drawings, the heater is rotated in such a direction as to beat the fiber down upon the auxiliary cylinder rather than up against it, inasmuch as it has been found that substantially better results are secured by the former mode of operation than by the latter. Again,the teeth of the auxiliary cylinder are preferably in-' clined, as shown in the drawings, in the direction from which the fiber is received upon them, so that the latter will be readily caught and retained and so also that the action of the indraft of air in stripping the :fiber off the said teeth will be freely eifected with the least amount of resistance operating to retain the fiber on the teeth.

For the purpose of enabling the force of the indraft through the opening 14C to be varied as required in practice in order to enable the desired results to be attained I provide means whereby the width of the said opening or aperture may be varied at will. To this end a regulating-plate 22 is employed in connection with the opening or aperture beneath the auxiliary cylinder 15. This regulating-plate is arranged to be adjusted transversely of the width thereof with the aid of any wellknown means for the purpose-as, for instance, clamping-screws 15, working inslots 15 in said regulating-plate, as indicated in Fig. 7. Through theadjustment of the regulating-plate the force of the draft may be so controlled as to cause fibers presenting themselves at the opening or aperture to be carried back into the sphere of action of the beater, while permitting heavy impurities which have become detached from the wool to pass out at the opening or aperture. The auxiliary cylinder acts so effectively to open up the stock that Varieties of stock which ordinarily are not in condition to be treated by a burring-cylinder after being delivered from a beater may be, in the present machine, fully prepared for such treatment. In some cases in order to clean the wool of aportion of the burs which it contains I set'or adjust the regulating-plate 22 so that the inner edge portion thereofprojects sufficiently into the opening or aperture 14: to encounter the burs as the wool with which they are associated is swept past by the action of the beater. Preferably in these cases the beater is provided with flat plates 18, Fig. 2, in lieu of the usual separate teeth 19, Fig. 3, or with brushes 17, Fig. 5, or with combs 16, Fig. 6. A cooperating means of effecting this preliminary separation of burs from the stock and causing the former to be discharged from the machine while the fiber is returned again i to the action of the heater is a sliding door 25,0pening into the passage 6 above the heaterchamber. By properly adjusting the sliding door 25 the indraft of air through the .opening 14 which operates to doff the fiber from the auxiliary cylinder can be increased or decreased, so as to permit the lightest burs to escape through the slit or opening between the edge of the regulating-plate 22 and the said auxiliary cylinder, while the fiber itself is drawn back off the teeth of the cylinder into the machine.

It will be observed that as the stock is carried spirally along within the casing of the machine from the feed end toward the other end it is fed first to one end of the burringcylinder and is gradually worked toward the other end of the latter. Thereby the stock is more opened up as it passes the guard, which allows the guard to have betteraccess to any foreign matter that maybe contained in the stock. Inasmuch as-the stock is re ceived upon the burring-cylinder instead of being blown out of a dis'charge-jspout by the action of the heater-as heretofore, the free-- escape of dirt and dust with the wool as in prior machines is prevented; Inthe present machine the action ofthe fan draws a cur-' rent of air into the machine under the burring-cylinder,which further insu r'es the escape My improved machinede livers the wool in a clean condition, free from of such matters.

burs.

What I claim is 1. A wool-cleanin g machine comprising es sentially, a rotating beater,a casing, a toothed opening-cylinder receiving thewool-carriedaround by the said heater and cooperating" with the latter intermediate the feed ofthe Wool to the beater and its final delivery-from the latter to open the Wool and loosen burs" and'other impurities, and an air inlet admit ingan inWardly-fiowing'current of air which impinges uponthe said peripheryand strips the wool 'frointhe'teeth of said cylinder, re turning it to the action of thebeater, snbstantially as-descrihed'.

2; In a Wool-cleaning machine, the combi-'- nation of a rotatingbea ter,-a casing therefor, having an airinlet thereiman auxiliarytoothed' cylinder occupying the said air-inlet and adapted'to receive ii'o'ol from theheater," and-means to vary theopening beti'veenthef edge of the said air-inletand Ihesaid aux?- iliary cylinder, and thereby vary the indraft" of air throughfthe said air-inlet;

3. 111a Wool-cleaning machine, the coinbi-- nation of rotating beater,- acasing therefor having; an airinlet therein, an auxiliary" toothed cylinder occupying the said air-inlet and adapted to receive wool from the beater,- said toothed cylinder cooperating with the'l beater intermediate'the feedof the wool to the latter and its finaldelivery from the latterto open up the Wool and loosen burs and otherir'npurities, and a plate adjacent the said auxn iarycylinder providedwith ineansof adjust ment wherebyto vary the openingbetween the casing and-the cylinder'an'dthereby,regu late'the ind'raft 'of'air" through 'thesaid airinlet.

having anair-inlet" therein, an' auxiliary toothed cylinder occupying thes'aid air-inletand adapted to receive wool-from" the-beater; said toothed cylinder cooperating -with the beater intermediate the feed-'o'fi'the-wOOl to the'beater and itsfina'l deliveryfrom the latter to open up the wool and loosen btirs' and other'impurities, a regulating-plate mounted in position toslidetoward and'from'the' point of approximate contact of the beater'and'aux'fl iliarj cylinder and thereby'vary theindraft of airbetween the said regulating-plate and 4." In a wool-cleaning machine, the combi nation of a rotating-beaterfa casing therefor,

the auxiliary cylinderwhereby the fiber ear ried on-the latter is stripped therefrom and returned'tothe action of the heater,while burs are discharged from the m ac'hinel 5. In a Wool cleaning inachine,"the combihavi'n'g an ai'r' i-nlet -therein,"an?auxiliary toothed cylinder occupying the said air-inlet and adapted toreceivefwool from the said heater, said toothed cylinder cooperating with thebeater intermediate'the feed of thewool to the heater and its final-delivery from the latter to open up 'the wool and loosen" burs and other impurities," a fan connected with thebeater-chamber to produce an ind'r'aftfof air through the Said air inIet," and thereby stripor-'doff the wool'from" said cylinder and returnit to the actio'n of the beater, and'aregulating-door cooperating with the said fan varythe strength an'd'rendered' adjustable to of thesaidindraft.

- 6." In a wool-cleaning machine, the combination" of a rotating'loeater', a ca singthere'fo'r,

having an air i'n'let in'-' that side thereof at which the teeth of the beater are descending, and an auxiliary toothed cylinder occupying thesaid aperture and 'receivingthe Wool from the beater, theindraft'ot air through thesa i'dr ai'r-inlet-aeting to strip the fib'er fr'o'm the teeth of the auxiliary cylinder-and returnit to the action'of the beater} said toothed cytinderc'ooperating With the beater intermedination of a rotating'heater, a casing therefor,-

ate the feed of th'eWvfoolto the'heater and its? final"deliveryfrom' the latter to open upthej" Wool-"and loosen bins and other impurities."

loo

7. In a Wool-cleaningmachine, the co'ihbt' nation ofa rotating beater, acasingtherefor',*

having an 'air -inlet therein,'an auxiliary toothe'dcylinder occupying-thesaidair-i-nlet,

said toothed "cylinder cooperating 'ithfth'e beater intermediate'the feed of" the Wool to" the beater and its final delivery from the*1at'-' ter toopen up the malaria loosen burs and other impurities, and "mean'sjto rotate" the" heater and auxiliary cylinder in opposite-di rection's," the 'sa'id air-inlet causingVthe-indraft of air through'the same acting' to stripfjthef fiber from the' teeth of 'the auxiliary cylinder and return it to the'action' of the theater.

8. In a Wool-cleaning machine, the coin'hi nation' are rotating b'eater, aicasing for the IIS iary toothed cylinder occupying the s'aidair' inletand receiving wool'from't-he heater; said toothed cylinder cooperating with the beater intermediate the feed of the tvool to'the heater" andit's final delive'ryfrom'the latter, toopen up the wool and loosen burslandbther im-' puritiesyan'd' means for creating" anind'raft of air through the saidair'-inlet"'. t0 'stripfordofi th'ewoolfrom the auxiliary cylinder' and returnit to the"'action of the beater.

9.."In a'w'oolclea nin'g machine, thefeombif" nation "of a rotating heater adapted to give the Wool a progressive spiral "motion in'the fiber from the latter, and. discharge the same from the machine, substantially as described. 10

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FREDERICK G. SARGENT. Vitnesses:

CHAS. G. SARGENT, R. E. BEDDING.

direction of the length of said heater, means to feed wool to said beater at or adjacent one end of the latter, a toothed barring-cylinder lengthwise of which the wool is Worked by the action of the beater, and by which the wool is taken away from the said heater, a guard by which burs are removed from the said buwing-cylinder, and means to strip the 

